By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal Among the many concerns of employers these days is finding the right people for their organization. Right behind that is a virtually equal concern for keeping those good people once they are found. If you are running a business of any size, I mean anything over about [...]

By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal “Respect … is appreciation of the separateness of the other person, of the ways in which he or she is unique.” –Annie Gottlieb Some years back I was approached by the CEO of an independent telephone company regarding a challenge he said he was experiencing motivating certain [...]

By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal Nothing earth shattering or mind bending in this week’s post, just a simple musing on some observations on the evolving business environment. The history of business is full of stories, too many stories, of products and ideas that someone, usually their creator, were certain would become the [...]

By Deka Wiebusch For The Bellingham Business Journal Women face tricky financial dilemmas throughout their lives. These situations can change your financial future drastically if you aren’t prepared for them. What sometimes seems like a choice you’re making for the current year or situation can soon become the path of least resistance, and suddenly turn [...]

By Mike Cook For the Bellingham Business Journal If a reference to Rage Against the Machine, a popular ‘90s rock band known for its political lyrics, made by a 70-year-old guy makes you scratch your head or roll your eyes — then we are probably already off to a bad start this week. If not, [...]

By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal When I am talking with business owners about their primary concerns, without question the No. 1 issue they raise is the challenge of finding good people. The term “good people” has more than one meaning. Sometimes it means “people who will work for what I want to [...]

By Mark Wallace For the Bellingham Business Journal Many of the toughest decisions that must be made to improve a community’s vitality involve compromise. But fortunately, a vital community can include both thriving business and a healthy environment. Walt Whitman once said, “Other lands have their vitality in a few, a class, but we have it in [...]

By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal As any business owner will readily admit, or they should, there is no easy answer to why they are successful. The same holds true for managers. Having a great idea for a product or service, wanting to be your own boss, being attracted to being in charge, [...]

By Mike Cook For The Bellingham Business Journal You’ve probably heard me say it here on more than one occasion: The number one complaint I hear from employers these days is how hard it is to find good people. But are they — good people I mean — that hard to find? If you read [...]